Nets announce Kyrie Irving has cleared NBA's health and safety protocols

The Nets announced on Tuesday that Kyrie Irving has cleared the NBA’s health and safety protocols as have Kevin Durant and LaMarcus Aldridge. This would be big news except for the fact that Irving remains ineligible to play any of the Nets’ next three games against the 76ers on Thursday, the Clippers on Saturday or the Grizzlies on Monday because all are at Barclays Center.

Irving has yet to play this season for the Nets, who are the top team in the Eastern Conference with a 23-9 record and have won six of their past seven games. That’s because Irving has not complied with the New York City vaccine mandate.

When he made that decision not to get vaccinated after attending training camp in San Diego, the Nets announced on Oct. 12 that they didn’t want Irving to practice or play with the team until he was eligible for all games.

As general manager Sean Marks put it at the time, "We are looking at putting a group of people [together] that are going to be able to participate fully, and that is what this comes down to. We’re not looking for partners that are going to be half-time. …That is why this decision ultimately was made."

The Nets reversed course on Dec. 17. At that time, they had an NBA-high 13 players in health and safety protocols because they either returned a positive or an inconclusive test for COVID-19. It was reported that Durant and James Harden pushed the Nets to allow Irving’s return.

But when the Nets relented and allowed Irving to return as a part-time player, it took exactly one day for him to enter NBA health and safety protocols. Originally, he was supposed to test negative for COVID for five straight days before being allowed to practice. So the fact he entered the protocols after one day suggests he either tested positive for COVID or returned an inconclusive test.

The Nets’ announcement that he cleared protocols 11 days later means he is eligible to play for them. Just not in the next three home games. The first game for which Irving is eligible to play is next Wednesday at Indiana. The Nets’ next road game is Jan. 12 in Chicago.

That means Irving really only is eligible to play two of the first 15 games after the Nets welcomed him back as part of the team. The Nets had three games postponed a week ago because so many players were in health and safety protocols that they could not put the minimum eight players on the floor for those games.

Now that Irving has returned, he is eligible to play 23 of their remaining 50 games. In other words, he is eligible for all of their road games except the two against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, which is subject to the New York City vaccine mandate.

In a recent interview, one reporter asked Nets coach Steve Nash if the Nets might consider losing games on purpose so they don’t have home-court advantage in the playoffs. That would mean any Game 7 would be a road game, and Irving would be eligible.

"I don’t think we can ever take that type of approach," Nash said. "I think our mandate is to improve throughout the season. We’re process-driven, trying to grow and learn and form an identity and cohesion. We want to win games, and finishing first in the East would be a great bonus for all that effort.

"So home/away, I think it’s kind of putting the cart before the horse. We just have to focus on what we do, and where we finish is reliant on a bit of luck and how hard and how diligent we are with our process."

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.